Twenty or so years ago, Vacheron Constantin debuted its Overseas watch, a model geared toward travel and escapism. On my last trip to the Bay Area, I brought the current version along with me. It has a black panda dial (when a black and white chronograph resembles two panda eyes looking back at you) with a stainless steel case and bracelet. Thanks to Vacheron's quick release system, the rubber and alligator leather strap option is easily swapped in. For me, the Overseas has never failed to inspire escape—even if sometimes that escape is a modest one, as it was in this case, to a charming little coffee shop called Pinhole Coffee in the Bernal Heights neighborhood of San Francisco. The shop, a wood-paneled interior with bright walls, penny tile floors, and raw redwood furniture, felt authentically NoCal to me, with a mild-mannered staff and hand-thrown coffee cups in earthy '70s colored glazes. Sometimes, a journey to a new place in a favorite city is all the inspired travel you need on a lazy Saturday morning.

'Time and Place' is Matt Hranek's regular dispatch on the latest watches from around the globe for Condé Nast Traveler. #watchwednesdays @wmbrownproject